ICYMI: Last Week's NP News, Today | August 12

Each Monday, we bring you a roundup of the news that’s caught our attention in the past week. Be sure to share the articles and blogs that intrigued you over the past week, in the comments.

HEADLINES

Helping the Poor is No Longer a Priority for Today’s Nonprofits (Chronicle of Philanthropy)
In a powerful indictment, Pablo Eisenberg of the Georgetown Public Policy Institute calls out the sector–including several specific players–for abandoning America’s poor in the face of systemic threats like “the massive assault on food stamps now working its way through the House of Representatives.” A follow-up by Nonprofit Quarterly gets the response of sector leaders, and offers suggestions for getting nonprofits back on the case. Stanford Social Innovation Review, meanwhile, looks at the new home of poverty–the suburbs–and the implications for service providers.

Thieves Return Stolen Computers to Nonprofit(Nonprofit Times)
In the heartwarming, "did-I-read-that-right?" story of the week, a California shelter for domestic violence victims is burglarized late at night, only to have its stolen tech equipment returned the next day with a note of apology reading, in part, “We hope that you guys can continue to make a difference in people's lives.”

COLLABORATION

Why Isn’t Social Enterprise More Social?(The Guardian)
An anonymous nonprofiteer called the Secret Social Entrepreneur airs some gripes about how go-it-alone tendencies at nonprofits get in the way of good collaborative work.

FUNDRAISING

Why Don’t Corporations Give to Charity? (Slate)
As profits soar, contributions dwindle, according to the latest numbers. Author Ken Stern (With Charity for All) examines a few reasons for the disconnect between profitability and generosity.

Donor Retention: What Do We Know and What Can We Do About It? (Nonprofit Quarterly)
For those who have the time, this long read delves into the advantages of focusing on donor retention over donor acquisition (lower marketing expenses, stronger relationships), the driving forces behind donor loyalty, and the “triggers” that “cause customers to reevaluate their relationship with the organization.” (And for those without the time, the action-oriented conclusion is absolutely worth a skim.)

MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS

Why you must stop ignoring social(Nonprofit Marketing Blog / Network for Good)
If you think Facebook and Twitter are just for young folks, think again: a new Pew Research Center study shows social media adoption rates for the 65+ crowd have tripled in the past 4 years. Network for Good’s Karyn Stein covers the basics for getting social online. Meanwhile, Nonprofit Quarterly posts a handy, highly informative chart explaining reasons and methods for getting involved on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Google+. And for further reference, Kivi Leroux Miller at Nonprofit Marketing Guide has a helpful, of-the-moment list of sector-relevant hashtags to follow on Twitter.

Putting Together a Valuable Reader Survey (Non-Profit 2.0)
There are countless reasons to get feedback from your supporters, clients, staff, and volunteers, but it’s harder to know how to collect and sort that feedback so that you can act on it. This brief primer on surveying your newsletter audience demos some best principles for gathering feedback that’s on-point, easy to understand, and actionable.

ON GCN.ORG

Meet New GCN Board Chair Edward Shartar(GCN)
Our new board chair is the managing director at Diversified Search, a former vice chair, and an impassioned leader who’s always prioritized helping people and communities “develop and achieve their potential.”

Findings Friday: Doing Good is Good for You(GCN)
A new study from UnitedHealth Group confirms what we already suspected: that people who volunteer experience significant improvement in their moods, their stress levels, and their sense of purpose. Even more intriguing: some volunteers report an improvement in chronic health conditions.

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This blog is presented by the Georgia Center for Nonprofits. GCN builds thriving communities by helping nonprofits succeed. Through a powerful mix of advocacy, solutions for nonprofit effectiveness, and insight building tools, we provide nonprofits, board members and donors with the tools they need to strengthen organizations that make a difference on important causes throughout Georgia. Editorial Guidelines